Certain combustion turbine engines such as the W501F/G engines manufactured by the assignee of the present invention use metal labyrinth seal strips affixed to and extending from a stationary diaphragm carrier. The metal strips rub against rotating compressor disks to reduce interstage leakage. The metal strips tend to mushroom or flatten due to rubbing. This produces rounded seal surfaces that reduce sealing efficiency. This rubbing may also produce metallic debris that can damage downstream airfoils. To avoid this problem, clearances between the metal strips and compressor disks may be increased. However, this also reduces the interstage sealing efficiency and degrades the overall performance of the combustion turbine engine.